The delegation, which is made up of MEPs from the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade (INTA), held several meetings with representatives of public authorities, elected representatives and civil society organizations from the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region.

President of the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region, Yanja Khattat, told reporters that the "fruitful" meetings between the delegation and the elected representatives of the region were an opportunity to highlight the importance of agriculture and fisheries agreements for the region's economy.

It was also an opportunity to underline the need to speed up the signing and implementation of these agreements in order to allow young people in the region enjoy the same privileges as other regions of the Kingdom, he said.

In this regard, Khattat insisted on "the need to market agricultural products of the Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region on the European markets while enjoying the customs privileges granted to other regions of the Kingdom, otherwise it will have a negative impact on projects initiated in the region ".

"Our first mission is to protect investors in the region and the various investments that contribute to the creation of wealth and jobs and facilitate young people's access to the business world," he said, adding that the region is preparing for the implementation of several flagship agricultural projects.

For her part, Patricia Lalonde, rapporteur of the INTA Committee for the Mediterranean countries, noted that "the visit of the MEPs is aimed at getting informed about the benefits of the agreement between Morocco and the EU and to assess its impact on the inhabitants of the region".

For her part, MEP Tiziana Beghin noted that this important trip has made it possible to know the positions and opinions of members of various elected bodies of the region and representatives of civil society regarding the benefits of the Morocco-EU fisheries agreement for the local population.

The members of the INTA delegation also met with President of the National Human Rights Council (CNDH), Driss El Yazami, and President of the Dakhla-Aousserd Regional Human Rights Commission (CRDH), Mohamed Lamine Semlali.

During this meeting, the delegation was informed about the activities carried out by the CRDH in terms of investigation and treatment of the citizens' complaints, El Yazami told MAP.

"Efforts to promote human rights, particularly in school-based educational clubs and within the civil society in the region, were also mentioned on this occasion," he added

News and events on Western Sahara issue/ CORCAS